Toasting device.



W. R. JEAVONS.

TOASTING DEVICE.

APPLIOATION FILED 1113.15, 1912.

WILLIAM R. JEAVONS, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

TOASTING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 26, l9l2.

Application filed February 15, 1912. Serial No. 677,797.

To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that l, WILLIAM R. JnAvoNs, a citizen of the United States,residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Toasting Devices, ofwhich the following is a full, clear, and exact description, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to devices for supporting articles such as slicesof bread adjacent to a heat source, whereby the same may be cooked ortoasted, and has for its object the provision of a simple, compact,cheaply made, and easily cleaned device which shall permit a pluralityof slices of bread to be rapidly, eiliciently and uniformly toasted atthe same t-ime and without any unpleasant drying or hardening of thecrust portion thereof.

More specilically the object of the invention is the provision of atoasting device adapted to be employed in connection with a stove havinga localized up-draftof highly heated air and products of combustion,such, for instance as the stove illustrated in my Patent No.'848,828issued April 2, 1907, the object being so to spread the heated columnand so tobalance the effects of radiation and convection that the breadwill be uniformly acted upon over all parts of the toasting surface.

Other objects and advantages of the invention reside in `the particularfeatures of construction which will be hereinafter described.

Generally speaking my invention may be defined as consisting of thecombinations and arrangements of parts and elements recited in theclaims hereto annexed and illustrated in the drawings accompanying andforming a part hereof, wherein:

Figure l represents a plan view of a toaster constructed in accordancewith my invent-ion, a portion of the grid being broken away so as toillustrate the heating or spreading plate; Fig. 2 is a, cross sectionalview taken substantially upon the broken line 2 2 in Fig. l,illustrating a portion of the stove top and burner chimney; and Fig. 3is a bottom plan view of a corner of the grid showing the method ofbuilding up the same.

Describing the parts by reference characters, my improved toasterconsists essentially of a rectangular sheet metal base member consistingof a downwardly convex plate portion l having at its edge a downwardlyturned flange portion 2. This member is preferably formed by drawing themetal in dies to substantially the shape illustrated in Fig. 2, theplate l taking a uniform curvature over all its surface and the marginaledges of this plate lying in a single plane for the reception of thegrid hereinafter described. The lower edge of the flange 2 is preferablyrolled and wired, as at 3, so as to stilfen the device and prevent itsbecoming warped or deformed. This construe tion is also advantageous inpreventing its becoming warped during the operation of enameling, incase enameling be desired. The central part of this plate is preferablyleft imperforate, as illustrated in Figs. l and 2, but the portionsthereof removed from the center are provided with regularly arrangedperforations 4, the diameter of said perforations being comparativelysmall nearest the center of the plate and increasing gradually with thedistance from the center, whereby it will be seen that the perforationsnearest the corners at a greater elevation than the other perforationsand of considerably greater size.

The grid which I prefer to employ is made of expanded metal which, as iswell known, is formed by slitting and expanding a piece of flexiblesheet metal so as to produce a foraminous body having intersticesdefined by narrow strips of metal which radiate from intersectionsalternating with the interstices, forming a kind of net work. Forfinishing and stiflening this grid I employ a rectangular sheet metalframe 5 whose external dimensions are the same as those of the basemember and whose internal dimensions are sutliciently smaller than theexternal to afford la suitable seat for the expanded metal. support,which is herein illustrated by the reference character 6. The sides ofthe frame are formed with flexible lips 7 which are bent over upon theoutside of the expanded metal as shown in Fig. 3, thus securing thewhole firmly together. This grid is removably secured to the base memberby means of clips 7a secured to the sides of the flanges 2 in anyconvenient manner, as by riveting or welding, and having bent portions 8overhanging the edge of the grid frame so as to form a slide in whichthe grid may be inserted. The forward end of the toaster V the top of astove of the type to which this toaster is particularly applicable, suchstove comprising a flat top plate 15 having a. circular aperture 16therein and having an upright chimney or draft tube 17 supportedcentrally beneath the aperture, the upper end of said chimney or drafttube being provided with an inwardly inclined restricting 'flange 18.Gas, oil, or other combustible fiuid being burned below or in the lowerpart of this chimney or draft tube, the heated gases escape upwardlytherethrough in a comparatively small and well defined column as is wellunderstood by those skilled in the art, and my improved toaster islocated with the lower-most portion of the plate 1 immediately in linewith the axis of this column. The gases are therefore caused to spreadover the lower surface of this plate, the imperforate condition of thecenter ofthe plate causing these gases to pass entirely toward the sideof the toaster and the graduated sizes of theperforations causing theheated gases to be distributed evenly through each perforated areabeneath the bread supported thereabove. The center of the plate, beingdirectly in the path of the heated column and nearest to the heatsource, becomes more highly heated than any other part of the plate, butbeing farther removed from the surface of the grid by reason of thecurvature of the plate than any other part thereof, its effect upon thebread thereon is not unduly great. Owing to the imperforate character ofthis portion it will be obvious that the total heating effect upon thebread thereabove will be due to radiation. At points farther removedfrom the center, the temperature of the plate will be markedly less, butits heating effect upon the bread will be balanced by its greaterproximity thereto. Furthermore at this point certain of the products ofcombustion are allowed to pass through the smaller perforations and actby convection directly upon the bread, the sum of the effects ofradiation and convection at this point being exactly the same as is theeffect of radiation alone at the center of the plate. It will thereforebe seen that the dished shape of the plate l has a twofold purpose;first in that the graduated distances of the upper surface thereof fromthe surface of are interdependent, since the greater the in-V clinationof the plate, the greater the rush of heated air to the marginal portionthereof irrespective of Vgnadaticns in the sizes of the perforations.The shape of the plate 1 and the size and disposition of theperforations thereon cooperate in causing a substantially uniformdistribution of heat beneath the grid.

The present toaster has been designed of a size to receive four ordinaryslices of bread within the area defined by the grid frame, and for thepurpose of preventing the crust portions of the slices from becomingburned, over-dried, or unduly hardened, I have omitted the perforationsalong certain portions, as clearly shown at 19, and 2O in Fig. 1. Theimperforate portions or strips 19 of the plate 1 extend radially fromthe center of the, plate, and these imperforate portions or strips aresubstantially at right angles to each other and are of suiiicient widthto protect the adjacent crust portions of two slices of bread from theheat due to convection.V Each group of perforations t is surrounded byan imperforate margin, said margin being formed by the adjacent`portions of the imperforate strips 19 and the imperforate marginalportion 20 of the plate 1. l/Vith this construction, it will be apparentthat the entire crust portion of a slice of bread will be supportedabove the imperforate portion of the plate `1 while only that part ofthe slice which is within the crust is subjected to the heat ofconvection through the openings et. rlhis is clearly indicated in Fig.1, wherein the dotted lines 21 indicate the crust portion of a slice ofbread. By reference to Fig. 2, it will be seen that the flange 2 extendsdownwardly a distance greater than the center of the plate 1. Thisresults in forming a pocket for catching the heated gases from theburner and through the perforations 4c.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A device of the character set forth comprising, in combinatioinaperforated metal imperforate marginal portion thereof and forming apocket with the under side of said body, and a grid supported above theperforations in said body.

2. A device of the character described comprising, in combination, ametal body having a plurality of perforated areas, each perforated areabeing comprised between a pair of imperforate radially extending bandsor strips and an imperforate marginal portion of t-he body, a flangedepending from the portion of the body outside of the imperforatemarginal portion thereof and forming a pocket with the lower surface ofthe body, the area of perforation in each perforated portion of the bodyincreasing from the inner or central portion toward the outer orperipheral portion of the body, and a grid supported above theperforations in said body.

3. A device of the character described comprising, in combination, ametal body having a depressed imperforate central portion and aplurality of perforated areas, each perforated area being comprisedbetween the imperforate center, a pair of imperforate radially extendingbands or strips, and an imperforate marginal portion of the body, aflange depending from the portion of the body outside of the imperforatemarginal portion thereof and forming a pocket with the lower surface ofthe body, the area of perforation in each perforated portion of theplate increasing from the inner or central portion toward the outer orperipheral portion of the body, and a grid supported above theperforations in said body.

4. A device of the character set forth comprising a metal body'having aperforated area of such extent as to be overlapped by the edges of aslice of bread and having an imperforate area surrounding the perforatedarea, and above which the edges or crust portion of a slice of bread maybe supported, and means for supporting a slice of bread above theperforated area of the body with the edges or crust portion above theimperN forate area of said body.

5. A device of the character set forth comprising a metal body having aperforated area of such extent as to be overlapped by the edges or crustportion of a slice of bread and having an imperforate area entirelysurrounding the perforated area and above which the edges or crustportion of a slice of bread may be supported, and means for supporting aslice of bread above the perforated area of the body with the edges orcrust portion above the imperforate area of said body, said body havinga depending flange ar` ranged to receive therewithin the heated gasesand distribute the same through the perforations.

6. A device of the character set forth comprising a metal body having adepressed imperforate central portion and an elevated imperforatemarginal portion with imperforate strips or bands extending radiallyfrom the center to the imperforate marginal portion of the body and saidbody being per' forated within the areas bounded by the aforesaidimperforate portions, the area of perforation in each perforated Zoneincreasing from the center toward the periphery of the body, a flangedepending from the peripheral portion of the body at the outer side ofthe imperforate marginal portion thereof and extending downwardly agreater distance than the depressed center of the body, and means forsupporting a grid above said body.

7 A toaster for stoves of the type wherein is produced an upwardlymoving column of heat-ed gases comprising a radiating and deflectingplate and a supporting grid adjacent to said plate, said plate beingformed with perforations for the passage of said heated gases wherebythe bread on said grid may be toasted by convection and certain portionsof said plate being imperforate and spaced apart a dist-ancesubstantially equal to the width of a slice of bread, whereby the breadcrust is shielded from the action of the heated gases.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto affix my signature in the presence oftwo witnesses.

WILLIAM R. JEAVUNS.

Witnesses:

J. B. HULL, BRENNAN B. VEST.

Genies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

